Hiya! Back at it again to present yet another guide for your viewing pleasure, this time concerning the last of the unique Ghost types in Tandor: Chainite! Strap on in, cause this guide is going to be a spooky one!

Chainite

BASE STATS

HP: 95 S.ATK: 80

ATK: 130 S.DEF: 60

DEF: 70 SPD: 60

Chainite is the type of Pokémon you get when the developers took one look at Wobbufett and said, “I can do better than that!” Indeed, the spectral nightmare would give that inflated punching bag a run for their money since in addition to Shadow Tag, one of if not the best Ability in the game bar Wonder Guard, it has actually serviceable stats! With an absolutely fiendish 130 in ATK, this bogeyman of a Pokemon can clean house with almost everything bar Bulky Pokémon, and it has Sword Dance to raise its to hair raisings levels. It doesn’t have anywhere near the same HP as the blue demon, but its defensive stats give the darkest monster somewhat decent bulk if HP and a Defense stat is fully invested in. Ghost/Dark is just a down right excellent defensive typing to have, since you have 3 immunities to the ever present Fighting, Normal, and Psychic, and almost everything but Fairy types do neutral damage at best.

The caged beast’s movepool is nothing to scoff at as well, as it gets a slew of move with offensive and defensive applications! Thunder Wave, Wil-O-Wisp, Toxic, and Hypnosis (Eventually, once Genderless Egg moves gets sorted out!): it has a full access to all the basic status effects with these moves, making it the ultimate pest with status. It also has its claws on Memento, Destiny Bond, and Curse, all of which are just a plain mean way of denying opponent the opportunity to sweep! On the brute force side of the equation, it has access to Earthquake, Brick Break, and Gyro Ball, giving the shacked spirted coverage option for days against all threats imaginable, and with Nasty Plot, it can make use of its inferior S.ATK if it really wants to go against the grain! Access to Knock Off and Shadow Sneak let the shade rob people of their items AND safely revenge kill targets after a single SD, and it even has Pain Spilt and Drain Punch a reliable forms of recovery and damage dealing. Iron Defense is also available if you desire a more Tanky Chainite, but that’s ill-advised in most circumstances.

If you don’t want to use Shadow Tag for some bizarre reason (or can’t, if the ability gets them banned to Ubers), it has Cursed Body for a high chance to disable a Pokémon’s move, making it quite a nuisance on that front indeed! With all these fearsome powers, abilities, and utility, what could possibly pose a threat to the Jason Voorhees’s of Pokémon?

Well, similar to the effect that the sheer amount of Friday the 13th movies has on its staring character, there is a surprisingly large amount of threats to this murderous monster. First off, while its bulk is not completely abhorrent, it is totally mediocre, and without investment Chainite can only take 2 or 3 blow in the best situations. A base Speed of 60 also leaves a lot to be desire for spirit, as it almost literally shackle it to move last unless you either have Shadow Sneak on it, or it is running max SPD + Speed Nature + Choice Scarf. The shade is also Genderless, which, while it doesn’t impact its performance in anyway (Besides making it immune to Attract), make it a nightmarish ordeal to breed a competitively viable one, putting yet another damper on Chainite’s viability. There is also the matter of its sole weakness, Fairies. If it is not packing Gyro Ball, ANY of the mystical Fairy types roaming the upper strata of the meta can make this monster go *Poof*, so direct combat against them is ill advised. M-Syrentide in particular is a right terror to the bogyman, as it only takes neutral damage to everything throw at it, is far more bulky than it, and has Pixilate Hyper Voice to banish it to the shadow realm! Nuclear types are also another menace to consider, but you shouldn’t even try fighting them in the first place unless you have a +2 Shadow Sneak ready!

Overall, Chainite great offensive and decent defensive stats let it trap Pokemon and either revenge kill them with ease, or set up to even greater heights of power. Just be very wary of Fairy types, or else! Be very afraid of the dark….

A simple, yet powerful set that will knock the lights out of any Pokémon it switches into, then proceed to do with the rest of the opponent’s team. With a predicted switch into a nullified move, or baiting a switch and coming in with Chainite, this shade can start getting to work. A single SD will immediately put immense pressure on any and all Pokémon, and maximized Defense let the shackled spirit soak up a blow in order to set up properly. After that, all there is left to do is pick the moves that suit your playstyle. Shadow Sneak’s is preferred over Shadow Claw on this set, as the priority it provides outweighs the lack of damage it puts out, and its other moves can pick up the slack in the damage department. SPD. Knock Off is just a wonderful Dark STAB, since it does big damage while crippling any and all opposition that is reliant on their items! Drain Punch rounds off this grim specter’s bucket list, providing complete neutral coverage with its Ghost and Dark moves, and as a way to keep itself healthy in the long run! However, since Dark/Fighting coverage is almost as good as Ghost/Fight, and you are not going to face any Fairies anytime soon unless you have to, feel free to drop Shadow Sneak for whatever utility move you might want or need on this night terror! The end goal of this set is to set up, clear a key threat against your team, and take as many Pokémon down with the shade as possible before it goes down. If pulled of correctly, you won’t be found wanting with this set! If you want to, you can also siphon some EVs out of its S.DEF into its HP to bolster its meager bulk either more, but just how much is ultimately up to you.

However, there is another move to consider in the final slot: Gyro Ball. While this beast shouldn’t stay in against Fairy types at ALL, it might be necessary if you either need to weaken the pesky Fairy first for another member of you team to clean up, or if switching out would provide momentum to the opponent you can’t afford to give up. If you choose to pick up that move, Payback is also another option to consider, as you will have a guaranteed 100 BP Dark STAB with the absolutely bare minimum speed (Which the second EV option will provide) needed to optimize the power of GB. Maximize Health and Split Defenses is a must, since you’ll need the buffer to weather hits and retaliate with the appropriate move after SD is set. Shadow Sneak is extremely useful on this sub-set for obvious reasons, since you don’t have any chance of moving first otherwise! Keep in mind that this move combo is very niche, but it would be remiss of me not to point out this synergy! Trick Room does correct the speed issue of this sub-set, though, so it would be a pretty bright idea to employ a user of the move if you want to get the most bang out of your buck!

Spectral Assault! (Nasty Plot Set)

Nasty Plot

Shadow Ball

Dark Pulse

Hidden Power Fight/Status Move/Memento

Ability: Shadow Tag

Item: Life Orb/Expert Belt

Nature: Modest

EVs: 252 S.ATK, 252 DEF, 4 SPD

Essentially the special version of Chainite’s brutally powerful offensive set, so there is not much to say about this set that has not already been stated. However, given that it doesn’t really have a powerful coverage move to compliment Shadow Ball and Dark Pulse, it is much easier to slot in either a status move or Memento onto this set, both of which offer great way to cripple opponent AND providing momentum. So, if you already have a strong Physical Attacker on your team, this is certainly not a bad back up set to run!

Here’s Chainite! (Choice Sets)

Shadow Sneak/Shadow Claw/Destiny Bond

Crunch/Knock Off

Drain Punch

Earthquake/Façade

Ability: Shadow Tag

Item: Choice Band/Choice Scarf

Nature: Adamant/Jolly

EVs: 252 ATK, 252 SPD

This set is designed for trapping and immediately snuffing out problematic threats against your team with minimal set up or hassle. Shadow Sneak is the preferred option for CB beasts, as its plenty powerful on its own and an easy way to finish off a weakened opponent with zero risk, while Shadow’s Claw higher BP and Crit chance is preferred on CS variants. Another option to also consider on CS Chainites is Destiny Bond, as it can quickly deploy it when its HP is low or its facing an especially powerful threat to your team to just drag it down in grave with it! The decision between Crunch and Knock Off comes down to either a beefier move for the shade to maximize the chances that its target going 6 feet under, or if you want just be a pest on top of being a nightmare to deal with. Drain Punch rounds out the bogyman’s coverage while providing some form of recovery. The final move is mostly to have either a pin point counter to the all-powerful Fire, Steel, and Electric types that roam the meta (Earthquake), or have a back-up move just in case the Chainite is further restrained with Burn or Paralysis while doing its job (Façade). This set really appreciate Wish user to keep its HP topped off, and a sturdy Steel type around to take care the Fairy types that give this spirit so much grief, so keep that in mind!

Just Plain Heartless (Name says its all, really)

Pain Split

Night Shade/Phantom Force

Toxic/Thunder Wave/Wil-lo-Wisp

Memento/Curse/Explosion

Ability: Either

Item: Leftovers

Nature: Careful/Impish

EVs: 252 HP, 252 S.DEF or DEF

The polar opposite of all the offensive movesets so far, this one just aims to make this malicious ghost as much of a thorn in your opponent’s side as possible. Pain Split serves as recovery and as a way to take a hearty bite out of a bulky Pokémon’s health pool, while Night Shade is there so that Chainite doesn’t become Taunt bait. Phantom Force, however, is a nice way to do damage and let Leftovers do its work while having a form of pseudo Protect in play. The status moves here serve to further impede and irritate anything your opponent throws at the pesky phantom, so choose which ever one that would best serve your own interest. The final move serves mainly as a final ‘Up yours’ to your enemy, and you have many methods to express that sentiment! Memento take the spirit out of any sweeper’s attempt to run amuck, Curse prevents Tanks and other bulky threats from staying in too long (and outright kills anything in four turns or less, if you are even more deviously minded!), while Explosion serves to drag anything down to the graveyard with it in a spectacular conflagration! Either ability works in conjunction with this set, as Shadow Tag can make sure you can take any target you want prisoner, while Cursed Body has a great chance of crippling Physical attackers even more! If you prefer, you can take some EVs out of HP to make it odd, so that Stealth Rock does minimal damage to it, or minimize it as much as possible so that Pain Split quite potent, and invest fully in the bogeyman’s defenses instead.

They’re Just Having a Bad Time! (Curse Stall)

Curse

Protect

Rest

Iron Defense/Nightshade

Ability: Shadow Tag

Item: Chesto Berry/Leftovers

Nature: Careful/Impish

EVs: 252 HP, 252 S.DEF or DEF

Oh boy, if you thought the Heartless set was rage inducing, then get a load of this monstrosity! Basically, with these four moves, whatever you switch into will be KOed in 4 turns or less, no exception what so ever. Either start setting up Iron Defense from the start, or just has the shackled menace Curse them straight away if they are a Special Attacker, then just spam Protect and Rest to your black heart’s content as your opponent literally withers away! Nightshade is certainly an option as well, as it not only prevent this shade from becoming Taunt Bait, but it just speed along the Pokémon’s inevitable demise. If Hypnosis is available to it later on, then has a way yet another way to delay your opponent as long as possible; how ghastly! Even if you have to switch out at some point, you are going to at least remove ½ of any opponent’s HP bar, leaving nice and soften up for the rest of Chainite’s team mates. A risky moveset, but one that has a high chance of the opponent breaking their keyboard if you can pull it off successfully, and guaranteed if you can do it multiple times!

The Ghost of Imminent Beatdowns (SubPunch Set)

Focus Punch

Substitute

Shadow Sneak/Phantom Force

Pain Split/Gyro Ball

Ability: Shadow Tag is preferred, but Cursed Body works too!

Item: Leftovers

Nature: Adamant/Brave

EVs: 252 HP, 252 ATK, 4 S.DEF

Another unorthodox set for the shadow beast, this turns the normally ferocious attack into a more passive aggressive menace. Switch into a target that can hardly touch you, set up Substitute, and proceed to lay one heck of a Focus Punch at them! With Shadow Tag and the fact that it will almost always set up a Sub after the opponent attacks, they have no choice but to take it square on the chin! Shadow Sneak can be used to finish off any threat if they somehow survived, possibly preserving your Substitute in the process. Phantom Force is another useful option, as it lets Chainite safely recover some HP with Leftovers for a couple of turns while the move is in effect, and is more likely to finish off targets with its higher BP. Pain Split can be used in conjunction with Substitute to drastically cut into the enemy’s life span, serves as a way to keep the shackled spirit healthy on top of that, and allow it to set up more Subs! Gyro Ball can be used in place if you want a move that can: A) Have an option for Normal types not requiring any setup, and B) Take out any Fairy types (Sans M-Syrentide) from behind your Sub if it survived its last encounter. If either of feature appeal to you, then a Brave Nature is preferred, along with 0 SPD IVs and investment, if at all possible. Again, having a Trick Room user would greatly help you pull this set with greater ease, but it may also mess up the SlowSub + Focus Punch combo, so be aware of that before you make any plans!

One thing to mention before wrapping up this set: watch out for Hyper Voice users. Any of the users in the current meta have either Pixilate or Atomazate (Hello yet again, Nucleon!), which completely bypasses any Sub you have in place to fatally deafen the beast. So if you see any of common users of the move, get Chainite out of there immedianlty!

Become an Uber Powerful Monster! (Cheesy Sweeping Set)

Sword Dance

Iron Defense

Rest

Payback/Gyro Ball

Ability: Shadow Tag

Item: Chesto Berry/Leftovers

Nature: Careful

EVs: 252 HP, 252 S.DEF, 4 DEF

Ruh rough, we have a potentially broken set inbound! While it looks about as gimmicky as Chainite appears to be mean, if its set up right, nothing can stop this menace at all. The plan is simple: Switch into a target that will do zlitch in the long run against the shackled spector (Preferbly a Physical Attack of some sort), set up as many Iron Defenses you are comfortable with, then ChestoResto. Leftover is also an option, if you want continuous regeneration and don’t mind the shade being a sitting duck for a couple turns each time you Rest. Regardless of item choice, you’ll now have fully healed beef steak of a bogeyman to play with, so you can safely start setting up Sword Dances for its future assault, and max out DEF with ID. Rest one last time if the fiend’s HP is a little too low for your liking, then began notching marks into the beast’s straight jacket, for its about to take the whole team down! Payback and Gyro Ball are your preferred attacking options, since Drain Punch, Earthquake and any of its Ghost STABs have a chance of being nullified by if they bring in their own Ghost/Flying/Normal type, respectively. They will also do tremendous damage without having to worry about speed at all, unlike most other sweepers, so an Impish nature is the most optimal choice if you want the shade to have the highest defenses possible.

Problem is, any strong Special Attacker or Nucleon (The one true counter to anything not faster than it) stand more than an excellent chance of derailing Chainite’s steam train O pain, so taking those guys out first will make it a whole lot easier to employ this set.

OTHER MOVES

Thunderbolt and Thunder: As long as Gellin, Neopunk, Yatagaryu etc. are still around, you are better off with HP Fighting in almost any case. However, it’s also your only true check to M-Syrentide you have at your disposal, so pick you poison!

Taunt and Torment: Can be used on the griefing set to royally screw over Tanky Pokemon or choice locked Pokemon, but the spirit is better off just straight up debilitating anything in front of it.

Mean Lock: Has a use on Cursed Body Chainites, but Shadow Tag is available, so….

Brick Break: Has the same BP as Drain Punch, but it shatters barriers instead of restoring HP, so it has that utility if you hate that tactic!

Giga Impact: On a Choice Set, its all but guaranteed to send whatever it hits to eternal darkness, but it leaves Chainite set up bait in the process, so use with discretion!

Foul Play: Why use this move, when you have a perfectly serviceable ATK stat yourself?

Ominous Wind: Has the ever present chance of raising all of the fiends stats, but do you really want to gamble with your Special Attack trapper?

Any of its Egg Moves: Unless you can learn them via TM or naturally with the specter, these options are forever barred to you! Devs, please fix this issue pronto, as Hypnosis is a pretty awesome move!

Dream Eater: Not worth it until Hypnosis is released for it, then it can be used on the griefer set as an alternative method of Healing and damage dealing.

Double Team: Want to be a Dodge Tank instead of a Defense Tank on the Uber Set? Then this is for you! After all, it is not like it can’t get cheesier than it already is!

Partners for Chainite:

Any Steel or Poison types that can run counter to the ever present Fairy types is a great partner to be had for this abhorrent monster. Either Metalynx provides a solid answer to most of the fae that exist in Uranium, and is more or less a direct counter to any M-Syrentide not packing Focus Blast. Lathan is also a great accomplice, as it both tanky and extremely powerful with Sheer Force backing up its most of its attacks, and can even take a couple of SE move without flitching if necessary. Chimiconda or M-Arbok are great partners on the Poison side of the equation, and both of them having Access to Petrify in some capacity, but the former doesn’t like M-Syrentide any more than the beast does. Both are also weak to Ground types as well, so investing in types that can resist it is a necessity if you want your whole team to stay together. Anything that can also slow down the competition is also helpful, so Thunder Wave and Sticky Web users like Antarki and Siekameter respectively are something to consider as well. Baton Passer such as Luxelong or Stenowatt can pass on Calm Minds, Sword Dance, Bulk Ups, Dragon Dance etc to facilitate a Chainite sweep, while Wish users like Sylveon can keep its HP topped of. A Cleric would also be nice, since Burn is something that just keeps on sucking, no matter the circumstance!

Counters to Chainite

Fairy types and Taunt users, basically. Both of them botch any plans this fiend has for total domination, and since everything practically out speeds it on a good day, it jolly well won’t have a chance to retaliate! As frequently mention in this guide, M-Syrentide is this shade’s arch nemesis, as it resists Gyro Ball and is more than sturdy enough to take an boosted Thunderbolt/Thunder, and has Pixilate Hyper Voice or Draining Kiss to completely undo anything effort on its part. Oblivicorn is also another big thread, as it resists or is neutral to all of the spector’s attacks beside Gyro Ball, and only gets stronger if it’s statused or debuffed. To my knowledge, Prankster still works on Dark types in this game, and even if it didn’t, all its users but perhaps Sableyes can still land it first, or decide to hobble it some other way. The spirit is also somewhat held back by its mediocre bulk, so unless you invest in one form of Defense or HP, it won’t last too long on the field without strong support on your part. Hazards are also a right menace for just about any set Chainite can run, so good luck getting any use out of them if a Lassiure has already set up several layers of Spikes and Stealth Rock!

EDIT: Made some corrections regarding Trick Room usage, and made some changes to the Partner Section of the guide. Also, I want to give a shoutout to @Dragonstrike for the help they gave me with the guide! Thanks, mate!

Like the wind, I come and go as I please... but I am always there to provide a comforting breeze.

Member of Team PUNishment. Pun-pare for Struggle, make it Double Team!

With Shadow Tag and that meidorce bulk, Curse Stall isn't such a bad idea at all, actually. Even if you can't manage to KO a Pokémon with the strat, you end up crippling them and forcing them to switch out against whatever you send in Chainite's place. Its a surprisingly deadly set, if things come together well!

Fairy types are such a threat due to the fact they are the only type that can hit them with SE moves, which is down right devastating with its lowish bulk. Avoiding them is top priority for the shade, unless you are the prediction master and are able to nail them with Gyro Ball if they decide to buff or use a coverage move...

Like the wind, I come and go as I please... but I am always there to provide a comforting breeze.

Member of Team PUNishment. Pun-pare for Struggle, make it Double Team!

Not quite what I mean when I said Gyro Ball works best in Trick Room, Windos. Trick Room definitely doesn't work for a set that aims to try and stall out many turns while it sets up. Trick Room support for Gyro Ball works best on the more offensively inclined sets, such as the Choice one. Looks pretty good, otherwise.

Shame this pokemon has so much going against it. That mediocre bulk and low speed really doesn't do it any favors.

What needs to be remembered is that good Assault Vest users should already have tanking capabilities.
They should have a way to heal off some of the damage they take, either with draining moves like Giga Drain, or with abilities like Regenerator, Poison Heal, Blood Lust, the situational Water/Volt Absorb. If they can't do that, they should have key resistances that allow them safe switch-ins; or prove effective at threatening out the mons they come into.
Users should be able to fire off powerful blows, since attacking is the only they're allowed to do.
Opportunity cost : is Assault Vest really worth using over another item? Isn't the pokemon too reliant on its support movepool?

I know the item isn't in the game yet, I really look forward to the final update that implements the missing items left. In the meantime, a little speculation can't hurt, can it? As I was scrolling down the dex for potential candidates, I noticed that Chainite seemingly possessed some of the qualities required.

On the offensive side, Chainite has everything it needs to perform well : excellent Attack BS, great offensive coverage with access to Ghost and Fighting moves, stab Knock Off, coverage moves in Earthquake and Gyro Ball, and priority in Shadow Sneak.

On the defensive side, Chainite is... average. Its Ghost/Dark typing grants it only one weakness to Fairy, but it still takes neutral damage from every other types bar Poison and immunities. Its defenses aren't terribly bad per se, but Chainite can't rely on them be considered a tank. Drain Punch can serve as recovery. Curse Body isn't too reliable but could prove useful in disabling an opponent's move, effectively forcing it to switch out.

Opportunity cost : The more I think about it, the less I think Chainite could be efficient in the role of a defensive check. Since I'm not too sure if, despite its interesting typing, its defenses are enough to make it tank enough hits to come out on the field repeatedly; I wonder if it would not rather use an attack-boosting item and stick to something it is better at, ie Trap-killing. You guys tell me what you think

I think Chainite would make a decent AV user if one went completely all in on it , but it would certainly miss the ATK boost it would get from LO and Sword Dance . The Choice Items also are quite appealing to it , as it expedites it's trapping job substantially , as it doesn't need to set up to start sending pokemon to the grave / outspeed some targets . Leftovers might also be more appealing on more Defensive orientated sets , as it can use Status , Pain Split , and other obnoxious moves it could not otherwise with AV. That , and you have to decide whether it be better of with Max HP or Max ATK inestment along with full SpDEF , which can be rather restrictive either option you choice .

Overall , Chainite could use AV , but it could just as easily do it's job without it , so it's a "Take it or leave it " decision , rather than a transformative one .

Like the wind, I come and go as I please... but I am always there to provide a comforting breeze.

Member of Team PUNishment. Pun-pare for Struggle, make it Double Team!